Animal protection charity OneKind has today (Friday 4 May) welcomed the launch of a public consultation on responsible dog ownership in Scotland.
The consultation has been launched by Christine Grahame SNP MSP ahead of her proposed Member’s Bill in the Scottish Parliament. The Bill aims to encourage people to only buy dogs from reputable breeders and not from puppy farms, where dogs are often sold with preventable diseases, painful conditions, and long-term behavioural problems.
Libby Anderson, Policy Advisor at OneKind said:
“OneKind is delighted to support Christine Grahame’s Bill, which offers practical solutions to a trade that often treats young animals more like goods than sentient individuals. Both sellers and buyers need to provide for their puppies’ welfare, but at the same time it’s essential they check that the other party is equally caring and responsible.”
The proposals outlined in the consultation include:
– reducing the threshold for licensing breeders to three litters produced per year for sale,
– introducing registration for sales by people breeding fewer than three litters per year for sale
– including transfers other than sales within the regulatory regime, and
– placing responsibility on both purchaser and vendor to be satisfied that the other party can meet appropriate welfare standards, using a checklist or contract system.
The proposals also include plans to reduce the threshold for a breeding licence to three litters a year.
Libby Anderson continued:
“The current threshold for requiring a dog breeding licence is five litters a year. OneKind has been calling for this to be reduced to two litters, so the proposed reduction to three is a step in the right direction.”
Last year, OneKind released a detailed report on the puppy trade in Scotland, along its own eight-point plan to protect puppies in Scotland. The plan includes a ban on third-party sales of dogs, mandatory standards for internet sales, a recommendation that every commercial sale should be subject to licence or registration, and a formal puppy warranty.
Notes to editor:
- OneKind is a Scottish animal protection charity working to end cruelty to Scotland’s animals.
- Read OneKind’s report, Scotland’s Puppy Profiteers here.
the ban of 3rd party sales of puppies is paramount. We have many “licensed” breeders who outsource sellers so that the public think they are buying from a family home.
A step in the right direction. In my opinion we should aim to ban all breeding and made neutering mandatory (just as we done with mandatory microchipping) unless you’re a registered breeder. Working in the veterinary industry I see too many puppies being born to owners who don’t know what they’re doing/are in it just for the money/whos bitch was accidentaly mated ect.
would you please put twitter and facebook icons on these pages so they can be shared thanks.
There are so many stray creatures being killed who cannot find fosters or forever homes in time around the world nevermind in your local area. I am a passionate believer in Adopt and Don’t Shop especially in places where spay and neutering or the treatment of stray creatures are not so good then it seems like a no-brainer to Adopt And Not Shop everytime. Save a creature’s life – don’t enable breeders to profit in such wasteful and cruel practices. There are literally mountains of dead creatures who have had to be killed or died as a result of not surviving being a stray around the world. If that is not enough for you to consider to Adopt and Not Shop everytime, I don’t know what will. It’s also concerning to me that an organisation who stands for compassion towards other species would not be taking that stance.
We shouldn’t be encouraging people to buy from reputable breeders. No breeder is reputable. We have far too many dogs in the UK as it is. Thousands are left abandoned in rescue centres and need homes. These animal charities are completely snowed under with dogs and are desperate. Breeders should be outlawed completely.